Amarnath ~ the holy Snow linga

Siva is our Lord ~  Sivalingam is a sacred symbol of the Hindus whom they revere as the manifestation of the Universal Self in His awakened aspect in union with His dynamic energy Shakti.

We pray to our Supreme God declaring our faith, obedience, love and devotion to Shiva worshipped in Linga form.

Sarva sukandhi sulepitha lingam,

Budhi vivarthana karana lingam,

Siddha surasura vandhitha lingam,

That pranamami sada shiva lingam.

I bow before that Lingam, which is the eternal Shiva; Which is anointed by perfumes,; Which leads to growth of wisdom, and which is worshipped by sages, devas and asuras.

              Come the month of June, it is holy time for Hindus as the  sacred pilgrim journey of Amarnath Cave begins. Amarnath Journey 2017 will begin on 29^th  June 2017 and will end on 7th August. The journey to the home of Lord Shiva through snow-capped mountains and green valleys is out-of-the-world experience. 

Thousands brave extreme weather to  get a glimpse of Shivaa linga made of snow.  Of the many interesting experiences in the sojourn to holy Amarnath, some are intriguing, many fascinating..

Amarnath cave  is  located in the hills at  Jammu and Kashmir. It  is situated at an altitude of 3,888 m (12,756 ft), about 141 km (88 mi) from Srinagar, and reached through Pahalgam town.  In the midst of snowy mountains, the cave is covered with snow for most of the year except for this short period when it opens for pilgrims and thousands brave chill weather to have darshan of Lord Paramasiva.  

To those who venture, it is the great darshan of Lord Siva linga -  ice stalagmite  inside the cave. Inside the 40 m (130 ft) high Amarnath cave, the stalagmite is formed very year for the darshan of devotees. 

It is there because it is the Holy place where  Shiva explained the secret of life and eternity to his divine consort, Parvati. It is a place of mysticism, a place of tranquilty and peace.  Pilgrims visit the holy site during the 45-day season around the festival of Shravani Mela.

~ ~ Allikkeni Mainthan.

stone pelters ~ and the presence of mind of Major Gogoi

Paid Media often portrays a different picture !! eulogizing wrong people !!!

Hurriyat leader Naeem Khan has been suspended from the party after an India Today TV expose showed him admitting on camera that he had received funding from Pakistan to stoke unrest in Kashmir Valley. Not just Naeem Khan, Hurriyat leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani even suspended the National Front led by him from the separatist organisation. Khan has continued to allege that the sting video is 'doctored' and has been unavailable for comment after the India Today TV sting operation on May 15. In the India Today TV expose, separatists Khan and Farooq Dar alias Bitta Karate confessed to receiving money from Pakistan-based terror groups.

The Hurriyat called for an emergency meeting on Saturday and summoned Naeem Khan, seeking his clarification on the remark that had exposed the separatists and left the rank and file of the Hurriyat rattled. A spokesperson of the separatist group said, 'Using his special powers (according to Hurriyat constitution), Geelani on Saturday suspended the National Front from the basic membership of the Hurriyat Conference until the clarification of all the related issues comes to the fore.'

'Even though (Naeem) Khan has raised questions over the veracity of the said clip (aired by India Today TV), his membership will remain suspended and the suspension will come into force with immediate effect in Srinagar and PoK chapter of Hurriyat.  [source : http://www.dailymail.co.uk]

Tough situations warrant tough reactions, and dangerous situations often, if not always, merit daring actions. When Major Nitin Gogoi decided (and, mind you, it could not have been anything other than a split-second decision) to use a civilian as a “human shield” to protect his men from a stone-pelting mob, he was simply reacting to a tough situation in a dangerous environment.

That our jawans are exposed to these kind of dangers every day, not only at the precarious borders, but also within the so-called protected confines of the country, is something we all know. Unfortunately, however, most of us fail to appreciate the gravity of such a situation, or deliberately choose to ignore the perils associated with it, for the army personnel, of course, but, and perhaps even more importantly, for the nation at large. And when someone does try to understand the complexities of such a situation and chooses to follow a path less treaded, he or she is accused of being insensitive to the concerns of the ordinary people of the land, in gross violation of their human rights. Or condemned for taking a stand contrary to that of the majority.

Contrarian or not, my opinion on the Major Gogoi episode is clearly and unequivocally in favour of the officer, who only did what was absolutely correct, and possibly the only sane and logical course of action available to him, in the circumstances.  The Indian Army has honoured Major Nitin Leetul Gogoi of 53 Rashtriya Rifles who had tied a local youth in front of a jeep last month in Kashmir as a human shield to avoid attack from stone-pelters.

The Army has confirmed that he was awarded COAS (Chief of Army Staff) commendation for sustained efforts in counter-insurgency operations by Army Chief General Bipin Rawat during his recent visit to Jammu and Kashmir.

Major who tied Kashmiri civilian to jeep  is rightly given clean chit, Army brass believes he saved lives

Jai Hind, Jai Jawan !!

Kedarnath Mandir reopens ~ Shri Narendra Modiji has darshan at the holy Temple

Of the many temples of Lord Shiva, this one at Himalayan range stands tall.  The temple of Shiva – ‘Kēdārnāth Mandir’ is on the Garhwal Himalayan range near the Mandakini river in Kedarnath, Uttarakhand.  Due to extreme weather conditions, the temple is open only between the end of April (Akshaya Tritriya) to Kartik Purnima (the autumn full moon, usually November). During the winters, the vigrahas (deities) from Kedarnath temple are brought to Ukhimath and worshiped there for six months. Lord Shiva is worshiped as Kedarnath, the 'Lord of Kedar Khand', the historical name of the region.

The place is not that easily accessible  by road and has to be reached by a 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) uphill trek from Gaurikund. Pony and manchan services are  available to reach the structure. The temple was built by Pandavas and revived by Adi Sankaracharya and is one of the twelve Jyotirlingas, the holiest Hindu shrines of Shiva.

Geographically it is located  21Kms from Sonprayag at an altutide of 3581 Mt., and naturally is the highest among the 12 Jyotirlingas.   The ancient temple dating back to more than  a thousand years is built of massive stone slabs over a large rectangular platform. The inner walls of the temple sanctum are adorned with figures of various deities and scenes from mythology. The origin of the revered temple can be found in the great epic - Mahabharata.

At the approach of winter in the month of November, the holy statue of Lord Shiva, is carried down from Kedarnath to Ukhimath, and is reinstated at Kedarnath, in the first week of May.  At this time, the Temple opens for darshan to pilgrims who throng in lakhs braving all difficulties.  The Temple is in most serene scenery, surrounded by lofty snow-covered mountains, a great mystic place.   There are more than 200 shrines dedicated to Lord Shiva in Chamoli district itself,yet  the most important one is Kedarnath, the present temple built by Adi Shankara in 8^th century stands imposing.  It is built of extremely large, heavy and evenly cut grey slabs of stones, it evokes wonder as to how these heavy slabs had been handled in the earlier days.

Of the many worshippers, this time, it was our respected Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modiji arriving in Dehradun on Wednesday and offering prayers at the holy Kedarnath temple.  Modiji reached the Kedarnath minutes before it reopened its gates at around 8.50 am, after the six month-long winter break.  The Prime Minister took part in an important ritual inside the sanctum sanctorum.He was then presented with a miniature replica of the shrine. Earlier, Shri Modi was welcomed by Uttarakhand Governor Krishna Kant Paul and Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat on his arrival here.

Shiva Shivaya Potriye !

சிவாசிவாய போற்றியே; நமச்சிவாய போற்றியே

இறப்பற்கும் ஏகனே ; பொருத்தருள் அனேகனே

பரம்பொருள் உன்நாமத்தை, கரம்குவித்து பாடினோம்

இறப்பிலி உன்கால்களை ; சிரங்குவித்து தேடினோம்